Speed-retarding apparatus for boats



' April 7, 1931. E. N-. CAVERT SPEED RETARDING APPARATUS FOR BOATS Filed Oct. 1'7, 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet l llllllllllllllllllllllllll'llllllIllllllllllll lliljllllllllllll llllllll'imlml iiwlilllllllllllllll 1 IIIIIIIIIIHI HIWIIIHI HImam:

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April 7; 1931. E. N. CAVERT 1,799,455

' SPEED RET RDING APPARATUS FOR BOATS Filed Oct. 17, 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Apr. 7, 1931 EDWARD N. cAvn 'r, or CHICAGO/ILLINOIS, nests-non or one-ruins) '10 SAMUEL rnmnssnn ANDoun-rzamnrcenoeen B. ARCHER, BOTH orcnrcAeo, rumors srnnn-n ernsnrue. APPARATUS ron Boers Apimeamn filed 'oeor er i7 1930, Serial 1N0. 439,318.v

This invention relates to a speed retard-- ingapparatus for boats, and an object of the V invention is the provision of means adapted to be manually operated to actas a brake in retarding or reducing thespee'd ofa vessel through theiwater; The appliance is' particularly adapted for use in connection with small power craft, although not necessarily' limited thereto, and an additional object re-i sides in providing specially constructed braking plates which, when lowered in operative position, function to direct an increased volumejof water in operative contact with the rudderwh reby mcrepositiveand greater-effectiveness of control 1s. prov1ded:-' More specifically, an oblect' of the .inven{ tion resides inthe provision of apair of diagonally disposed rearwardly converging vertically reciprocable plates spaced apart and operable in unison between the boat propeller and the rudder to act as abrake and means for directingan increased volume of; water against the, rudder when 1n lowered position. I

Other objects will appear hereinafter; 1 The invention consists in thecombinations and arrangements of parts hereinafter described and claimed, 7

The invention will be best understood by reference to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, and in which:

F igz'lis a side elevational view,lpartially' broken away, of a boat of the small power craft type, incorporating the present invention' 7 I i.

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the boat shown in Fig. 1, with parts broken away to show the construction and arrangement of the incorporation of the present invention;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged vertical sectional view, taken substantially on the line 33 of Fig.2;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged transverse sectional view, taken substantially on Fig. 2; r

Fig. 5 is an enlarged view of one .of the water-tight members for a braking plate, taken'substantially on the line 55 of Fig. 4;

the line of Fig; 6 is a detail view, taken substantially on the line 6,6 of Fig. 5;'and V V Fig. 7 is a horizontal sectional view showing the connection of the braking plates, taken substantially on the line 7-7 of Fig. 4:. "As illustrated in the drawings, the inven- .tion is shown applied toa boat having a hull 10, rudder 11, propeller '12, and steering wheel 13. The preferred embodiment of the present invention comprises'a'right braking" plate 14 and a leftbraking plate 15. r In order to enable these plates to be elevated and lowered and extend through't-he hull at a point normally below. the. waterv line, each plate s preferablyrectangular 1n cross-sectlonal outline, and, as shown in Fig. 7, the

pletesfare disposed indiagonal position to' converge rearwardly, Furthermore, the plates 14 and 15 are preferably spaced a substantial distance, as shown in Fig. 4:, so as tobe disposed on either-side of the longitudinal centerof the boat and correspondingly on either side of a longitudinal line extending through the propeller shaft and the rudli- In addition, the two plates are'positioned transversely bet-ween the propeller and the rudder, and by this construction and arrangement when in lowered position, not

only is the speed of the boat retarded "by reason of the resistance offered by the forward surfaces of the plates, but an increased volumeof water is directed against the rudder,

offering more effective steering control by the pilot. The two plates Hand 15 are united adjacent their upper extremities by a transverse yoke 16, which in turn is secured to the lower end of a vertically extending rack 17.

Rack 17 is guided for vertically reciprocating motion by direct contact with the inner surfaces of a guide housing 18 which'may'extend upwardly from the deckin a small boat,

as shown.

Rack 17 is provided with a plurality of rack teeth '19 arranged to mesh-with the teeth on pinion .ZOwhich is secured to transverse shaft 21 journaled in bearings 22, In order to effectuate water-tight engagement, each plate 14: and 15 reciprocates through a lower plate 24 and an upper plate 25, as shown in Fig. Inasmuch as these water-tight plates are identical for both the braking plates, a description of one set will sufiice. The lower plate 24 isprovided with a central slot 26 slightly larger than the cross-sectional area of the enclosed braking plate, and the upper plate 25 is provided with a similar'central slot 27. The slot 26 in the lower plate 24 is preferably recessed to receive a gasket or packing 28, and adjusting bolts 29 extend through the upper plate 25 and are threaded into the lower plate 24 forcompressing the gasket 28 when necessary for water-tight engagement, the lower plate 2a being secured to the hull by screws 30. a As shown, the mounting is preferably directly above the tunnel stern where this method of boat construction is employed for shallow water.

A drum 31 is secured to shaft 21 and carries several turns of a cable 32 which extends forwardly and is wound on a smaller drum 33 secured to wheel 34 journaled .in bearing 35.

As shown, wheel 34 is provided with an operatin g handle 36 andis conveniently located adjacent the steering wheel 13 so as to be ac cessible to the pilot. I p

The operation will" be mainly apparent from the foregoingdescription. When desired,,the plates may be loweredby the mere expedient of rotating wheel 34 in a counterclockwise direction by means of handle 36,

using only the left hand and leaving the right riation and modification without departing from the spirit of the invention. I, therefore, do not wish to be'limited to the precise details of construction set forth, but, desire to availmyselfof such variations and modificae tions as come within the scope of the appended claims. r v

Havingdesc'ribed my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Lettors Patent is:

1. The combination with a boat, of a right braking plate,.a left braking plate, a watertight connection between each plate and the hull of the boat, said plates disposed angularly with relation to each other and arranged to converge rearwardly, and manually operable means for elevating and lowering. said plates, said plates in lowered position disposed upon either side of the longitudinal center of the boat, and said plates in lowered positionv disposed transversely between the boat propeller and the boat rudder.

2. The combination with a boat, of a right braking plate, a left braking plate, a watertight connection between the boat hull and each ofsaid plates, a racksecured to said plates, 'a pinion engaging said rack, and manually operable means for rotating said pinion to elevate or lower said plates in unison.

3. The combination with a boat, of a right braking plate, a left braking plate, a watertight connection between the boat hull and each of said plates, a rack secured to said plates, a pinion engaging said rack, and manually operable means for rotating said pinion to elevate or lower said plates in unison, said plates in lowered position disposed upon either side of the longitudinal center of the boat. p p

i. The combination with a boat, of a right braking plate, a left braking plate, a watertight connection between the boat hull and each of said plates, a rack secured to said plates, a pinion engaging said rack, and manually operable means for rotating said pinion toelevate or lower said plates in unison, said plates in lowered position disposed transversely between the boat propeller and the boat rudder.

5. The combination with a boat, of a right braking plate, a left braking plate, a watertight connection between the boat hull and each of said plates, a rack secured to said plates, a pinion engaging said rack, and manually operable means for rotating said pinion to elevate or lower said plates in unison,- said plates in lowered position disposed upon either side'of the longitudinal center of the boat, and said plates arranged to con verge in a rearward direction.

6. The combination with a boat, of a right braking plate, a left braking plate, a watertight connection between the boat hull and each of said plates, a rack secured to said plates, a pinion engaging said rack, and manually operable means for rotating said pinion to elevate or lower said plates in unison, said plates in lowered position disposed train-- versely between the boat propeller and the boat rudder, and said plates arranged to converge in a rearward direction.

7. The combination with a boat, of a right braking plate, a left brakin plate, a watertight connection between the boat hull and each of said plates, a rack secured to said plates, a pinion engaging said rack, and manually operable means for rotating said pinion to elevate or lower said plates in unison, said plates in lowered position disposed upon either side'of the longitudinal center of the boat, said plates in lowered position disposed transversely between the boat propeller and the boat rudder, and said plates arranged to converge in a rearward direction.

Intestimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

EDWARD N. CAVERT. 

